ABOUT THE APPALACHIAN WRITER IN RESIDENCE POSITION

The AWiR post is sponsored by Ashe County Public Library in partnership with On the Same Page. Each author chosen for this residency strives to portray contemporary Appalachia with nuance and authenticity in their work. The AWiR is an integral part of the festival, participating in a number of events spanning the entire week of the festival.

2024 Appalachian Writer in Residence: Jim Minick

Jim Minick is the author or editor of eight books, including Without Warning: The Tornado of Udall, Kansas (nonfiction), The Intimacy of Spoons (poetry), Fire Is Your Water, (novel), and The Blueberry Years: A Memoir of Farm and Family. Minick’s work has appeared in many publications including The New York Times, Poets & Writers, Oxford American, Orion, Shenandoah, Conversations with Wendell Berry, Appalachian Journal, Wind, and The Sun. He serves as Coeditor of Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel.

Minick’s honors include the Jean Ritchie Fellowship in Appalachian Writing and the Fred Chappell Fellowship at UNC-Greensboro. Minick has also won awards from the Southern Independent Booksellers Association, Southern Environmental Law Center, The Virginia College Bookstore Association, Appalachian Writers Association, Radford University, and elsewhere. His poem “I Dream a Bean” was picked by Claudia Emerson for permanent display at the Tysons Corner/Metrorail Station. He’s garnered grants from the Virginia Commission for the Arts, the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, Augusta University, Georgia Humanities Council, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.

As the Appalachian Writer in Residence Jim will participate in the following activites: 

• Two Craft Talks open to the public at Ashe County Public Library
• A reading open to the public at Ashe County Public Library
• An educational workshop for Ashe County Young Eisner Scholars Appalachia Students